Vol. 483 No. 3
35 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will review the draft proposals for the new urban renewal scheme which will be introduced in 1998 to ensure that towns of less than 6,000 population will be included; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20049/97]
76 Mr. Farrelly asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will change the eligibility criteria for urban renewal designation for towns with less than the current limit of 6,000 in view of the fact that Deputy Farrelly has a keen interest to see the town of Kells, County Meath included; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20057/97]
237 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will extend the urban renewal scheme to include towns with a population of less than 6,000 inhabitants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20582/97]
291 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the current status of the review of urban renewal; when he will bring forward guidelines for a new urban renewal programme; and his views on the possibility of zoning for urban renewal areas such as Santry Village, Dublin 9 which has been progressively fragmented by traffic plans and urban sprawl and badly needs the opportunity for renewal under a coherent plan. [20486/97]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 35, 76, 237 and 291 together.
The new urban renewal scheme which will come into operation on 1 August 1998 will be based on a more planned and targeted approach than earlier schemes. Designations under the scheme will be considered on the basis of integrated area plans prepared by local authorities for areas of greatest priority in urban renewal terms.
Last week, I approved the guidelines for the new urban renewal scheme and these have now been sent to local authorities. These guidelines, a copy of which is available in the Oireachtas Library, set out the criteria which local authorities are asked to use in the selection of urban areas for which integrated area plans are to be prepared. The document also provides guidance on the type of issues which those plans are expected to address.
In the context of the criteria for selecting areas, the guidelines deal with the important issue of the size of urban areas likely to be suitable for consideration under the new scheme. The point made in the guidelines is that very few towns of less than 6,000 population received designation under the schemes up to now and that such towns would be likely to have greater difficulty qualifying under the criteria for the new scheme.
While this does not equate to setting a strict 6,000 population threshold, it reflects the fact that the scheme is concerned with urban renewal and that it must therefore, of its nature, be confined to areas with strong urban characteristics. The indicative population level also reflects the fact that the successful implementation of a scheme of this nature in an urban area requires a minimum level of scale.
